Excerpt from Term Paper :

Human Development

In order to learn about the development of males in their late teenage stage, between the ages seventeen and twenty, an eighteen-year-old male was interviewed. An individual of this age was chosen since it is believed as the age that acts as a transitory period between teenage and adulthood thus the developmental features are explicitly displayed at this age within the period targeted. The individual interviewed was a student undertaking his A-level studies in a public university. A student at this age was appropriate since common teenagers are still at this level of education apart from a few who could have got a chance in full employment or probably dropped at some level for various reasons. The individual has an African origin but has been brought up in a western culture and he totally adapted to the culture.

In the current society there are a number of emerging issues with regard to sexual orientation, a lot of debates have come up on whether to legalize any other sexual orientation other than the common male-female orientation. In regard to this it was important that this is put into consideration when picking the interviewee and in order to avoid any controversy on the result the individual picked was of straight or male-female sexual orientation. This pick was appropriate since there are no records of a part of any culture that have raised debates trying to oppose this kind of orientation thus the views and information that would be collected can be easily accepted by a large population. Additionally the individual did not have any significant disability and was fit to carry out all activities that would be expected of any person at his age. He was of average intelligence, not a genius or too damn and thus would not be expected to give extreme ideas to either side. He was also physically fit and having average body weight and height and thus did not experience any challenges in carrying out physically demanding activities that may be experienced during development.

The interview questions dwelt on issues that an individual experiences at the teenage stages of life, these involved personal feelings and the feelings of others around them. In trying to find out these the interviewee was asked that would let him explain how he feels as a person and how the people around him react to his way of life and the changes that he his undergoing. Most commonly physical and behavioral changes are experienced at this stage of development and some could be desirable while others may not be acceptable especially to the people around you. The questions also concentrated on how the parents and guardians handled the individual and how they responded to the things that the individual deed during this stage. For instance one question was framed as "Were your parents comfortable in allowing choose what to do during your free time at home?" such questions helped in finding out the feeling of the parents with regard to controlling or guiding teenagers.

During the interview it was discovered that the interviewee was more willing to discuss how hw felt about the people around him including the parents than to discuss what others feel about him, he had a feeling that the people around had negative views about his behavior and were always opposing whatever he felt like doing and recommending their own. From the expressions of the respondent it was clear that he was very enthusiastic to discuss the topic of development and would only appear to be defensive when asked an issue that seemed to make him feel as the wrong person and not the people around him. There was a lot that was deduced from the manner in which he carried himself, he portrayed a character of greatness and expressed a feeling of independence. As expected, at this stage of life many individuals feel that they are old enough to do almost everything on their own and are always trying as much as possible to express this to the people around them. This they do by displaying a lot of made up confidence by way of talking and general body posture. This does not just stop at the behavior but is carried through to the mode of dressing. In this particular case, the respondent wore official clothing perhaps due to the fact that he had a prior knowledge of what was to be discussed thus wanted to portray a sense of adulthood and responsibility. Additionally, he carried out himself in a gentle way though it was clear that he was struggling to do this but he felt more satisfied doing this over the whole period he was being interviewed.

Most teenagers are very friendly and can easily relate to many people, however it is also common to find them choosing on a few individuals. This is normally driven by the views you express towards them and your age bracket. In most cases they easily relate to people who are either in the same age group with them or those a little older or young adults as they are commonly referred. In this case the respondent developed an almost immediate relationship with the interviewer which was positive, this was brought about by the topic in discussion which sounded interesting to him. At the same time the questions were asked in a manner that made him not be on the defensive but rather express his views openly since they were not bias. Even though at the beginning there was a lot of uneasiness in answering the question this changed when he realized that the questions were not meant to victimize him in anyway but rather to find out what he goes through and there was no hidden intention. As the discussion progressed he became more willing to give more information even those that he was not directly asked but he felt was related to the topic in discussion. However, he felt that his views were not being accepted or understood easily since there was a large age difference between him and the interviewer. This age difference made him feel like they held totally different views in terms of expected behavior as most people of a similar age had expressed before. Overall the relationship and rapport that was created was positive and became much important throughout the interview period.

At this age commonly referred to as the age when adolescents "leave the nest" individuals identify that their parents can make their best friends, it is at this time when parents can assist their children more by helping them make their decisions. As one philosopher once noted "18-year-olds are sometimes amazed at how much their parents have grown on so little knowledge and how much they have learned in the past few years!" This was evident in the way the interviewee expressed his sentiments and always expressing a view that his parents were always concerned on what he does and were always happy at his achievements. He said that his parents always advised him on anything he intended to do or they thought he would be interested in doing and made follow ups on such actions. Even though at the early stages of adolescence peer group is very important to an individual it is observed that at the late stages these groups are taken over by a few good friends as the groups become less important. The interviewee admitted that he had little interest in the groups that he was identifying with about two or three years before and had now identified a few friends whom he described as "more important in life than the large groups that have no goal in life." When asked if the very groups that he identified with still existed, he said that he believed they no longer existed since he did not see them anymore, this indicated that almost all his age mates shared the same feelings and thus had abandoned such peer groups.

The most notable issue is also the drastic change of interest and focus with a shift from interest in mere entertainment to focus in vocational future or on education. This is mostly driven by the desire to become the man he said he wanted to be when he grew up, such questions are normally asked to young children who normally give very optimistic answers to such questions. The unrealistic fantasies that are normally embraced at the early stages of adolescence are replaced by more levelheaded plans in terms of education and vocational future. At the late adolescence, the individual is mature and is in a position of understanding his strengths and appropriately apply such strengths in trying to attain impending career. The respondent portrayed higher level of reasoning when asked about his future plans and what he expected to achieve in both short-term and long-term goals.

An important step in this stage of life is the separation of the teenager from the parents as it is necessary for them to…

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